Protests in Athens Greece

A Peaceful Athens, Greece - 10 Days Earlier

Greece Protests in News Again

Timing is everything they say.   We have just returned from our 12-Night Mediterranean Cruise which included stops in several Greek ports of call, including Athens, Corfu, Mykonos, Olympia, and Santorini. During our stay in Greece, things were very calm and peaceful.    Not so, this week as protests once again have erupted.

According to AP, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou offers to resign in the wake of the protests. Thousands of Greek workers swarmed downtown Athens to protest a package of budget cuts and tax increases for the financially strapped nation.

The European Union (EU) is proposing stiff cuts in an attempt to bail out Greece and other countries that are experiencing financial difficulties. The current Greek parliament is seeking tax hikes, deep cuts in public-sector wages and a fire sale of state assets as part of the current bailout package. Protestors resist this and are seeking a new government and renegotiation of the package.

Ironically, the protests will hurt the one industry that is on the rise in Greece - tourism. Having just returned from the region, that would be a terrible shame as Greece has so much to offer to tourists.

We'll be featuring each of our ports of call in future articles with the hopes that things will calm down and tourism will continue. We are very grateful that our plans were not interrupted by the current outbreak of violence.

Cruise lines will be closely monitoring the situation in the Greek Isles and adjust itineraries as necessary. We'll bring you updates if changes are announced.